Wardrobe case



W. WlNTZ WARDROBE CASE Feb. 5, 1935.

Filed Nbv. 19, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. M/Zwm M2722 W MW,

ATTORNEY! Feb. 5, 1935. w. WINTZ 1,989,778

WARDROBE CASE Filed Nov. 19, 1932 5 Shets-Sheet 2 a jwi Z/ .4!

INVENTOR.

BY MW,

ATTORNEY) Feb. 5, 1935. w. WINTZ 1,939,778

WARDROBE CASE Filed NOV. 19, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 a f Z5 4 i a? i i 57 $3 P Mr: q I

1 1 y X n 3/ 55 y? 7 %7/ I INVENTOR.

z I Mi/za/zz .W/H/Z 7- ATTORNEY};

Patented Feb. 5, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WARDROBE CASE of Wisconsin Application November 19, 1932, Serial No. 643,343

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a hand carried luggage case of the Wardrobe type.

The main object of my invention is to provide the case with a garment carrying element or fixture of such a construction that one or more mens suits including coat, vest and trousers, may be readily and conveniently carried in folded form in one section of the case, as for instance, the cover or lid thereof, without being wrinkled or creased.

Another object of my invention is to so construct and arrange this fixture in the case that conventional form or garment hangers of the flat type shaped to fit the shoulder and neck por- 5 tions of a coat and vest and having a cross-bar for the trousersmay be used to attach each suit to the fixture.

A further object of my invention is to provide novel means for detachably connecting the garment hangers to the carrying element or fixture, said means comprising interengageable parts on the hanger or hangers and the element, respectively.

A further object of my invention is to provide the carrying element in the form of a support which when in lowered position over the body of the case will support the garments in flat wise relation thereon.

A further object of my invention is to provide this support with an extensible section which when extended will be so angularly disposed to the support that the latter will be held above the body of the case and in substantially horizontal position thereover, so that the support if an open frame will prevent the garments from sagging or dropping into the body of the case.

A further object of my invention is to employ this extensible section as the means whereby the element may be grasped for swinging it into and out of the lid or cover of the case and also to lift the free portions of the garments on the outer side of the element when lowering it over the body of the case.

, A further object of the invention is to provide the element at its outer or free end with means, preferably in the form of an attachment, by which the folded portions of garments over the outer end of the element, when more than one man's suit is attached thereto, will be distributed along the length of the element to reduce the bulk of the material where folded over the element. With this means in the form of an attachment, it may be removed from the element to permit an underlying suit to be attached or removed from the element.

In the accompanyingdrawings, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a luggage case equipped with a garment carrying element of my invention, the case being shown in open position and with the element, with a single suit thereon, in lowered position.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken through the open case, the garment carrying element with two suits thereon being shown in raised position in the lid or cover of the case in full lines; the element without garments thereon being shown in lowered position over the body of the case in dot and dash lines;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the manner in which the element is pivotally and releasably secured in the case;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal plan View, partly in section, taken on line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the means for detachably connecting the garment hangers to the element;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a top plan view, with parts in horizontal section, showing the manner in which the auxiliary or supplement bar, to be hereinafter described, is releasably attached to the element;

Fig. '7 is a vertical sectional view taken on line 7-'7 of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is a side view of the assembly shown in Fig. 6, with parts broken away and in section, respectively.

As shown in the drawings, the case to which my invention is applicable is of the box type having hingedly connected, rigid body and lid or cover sections 1, 2. The hinge connection 3 between the sections is at the rear of the case, being along the upper edge of the rear wall 4 of the body section as shown in Fig. 2. The cover 2 when closed fits against the upper edge of the body section and is releasably secured thereto by latch and bolt means 5, 6 on the front wall '7 of the case as in-devices of this general character.

The garment carrying element 8 is designed to fit within the cover 2 and occupy the greater portion thereof. Said element is in the form of a rectangular metal or steel frame having side members 9, 9 and end members 10, 11. The latter are integrally connected with the side members, the frame being formed from a single metal strip. A wood or other non-metallic bar 12 is secured to the end member 11 which is at the outer or free end of the frame. This bar is substantially cylindric in cross-section to prevent creasing or wrinkling of the garments folded thereover in the use of the frame.

The frame 8 is pivotally and releasably mounted in the lid or cover 2 adjacent the hinged connection between the lid. and the cover so that the frame may be swung into and out of the cover and when out of the cover occupy a lowered. position over the top of the body section as. shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The mounting employed comprises a pair of co-operatingmembers at each side of the frame. These members, as shown in Fig. 2 comprise a U-shaped metal fastener 13 pivoted at 14 to the adjacent side of the frame and abracket 15 secured in the lid or cover 2 on its side wall. Each bracket has a recess 16- to receive. the tongue section on the outer side of the co operating fastener 13. The parts 13 when inserted into the bracket 15 are held stationary and permit the frame to'turn on the pivots 1 1 which are in axial alinement. The brackets are arranged in the lid or cover 2 to have their'recesses ldvertical when the lid is raised and with the parts 13 engaging the brackets from above, the. frame may, be

readily and easily removed fromthe casewhen desired. The parts 13 and the brackets 15 may have interengaging bosses and recesses to hold the frame from accidental release from the lid.

For attaching one ormore mens suits, including coat, vest and trousers, to the frame, I provide garment hangers. 1'7, one for each suit. These hangers are of the conventional fiat-type, each having neck portion 18, diverging side or shoulder engaging portions 19, ;19 and acrossbar 20. These parts are in the same plane and are preferably. integrally connected by cutting the hanger from a flat sheet which maybe of a singlelayer or one or more layers'when in laminatecl form. A U-shaped metal'bracket 21 is rigidly attached to the rear'bar 10 of the main frame midway the ends thereof and extends into the space within the frame, as shown in Fig. 5. A rivet 22 fastens the bracket'to the frame, the bracket being shaped to straddle the bar 10 of the frame over its outer side as shown. The legs of the U, are connected on the innerside of the bar by a. pin 23 which constitutes one of the members by which the hangers 1'1 are attached to the frame. j

The attaching means for each hangerl'l, cornprises a latch member 24 pivoted intermediate its ends, on the neck portion 18 of the hanger as shown in Fig. 4. The latch member is provided adjacent one end with an arcuate slot 25 opening through one side of themember to engage the pin .23 on the bracket. 21 when the member is swung into engagement with the pin. 1 The hanger has aslot 26 in its neck portion to receive the pin to facilitate the application of the hanger thereto. The slot is not-much wider than the pin to reduce lateral shifting of the hanger. The outer end of the neck portionof the hanger fits close to the bar 10 and thus undue swinging of the hanger about the pin isavoided- (See Fig. 4.)

' The end of the; latch member 24 Opposite the slot 2 5 is made hook shaped, asat 2'7, to provide a handle for swinging thelatchmeniber into and out of engagement with the pinand also 'toprovide means for suspending the hanger with or.

without garments thereon in aclothes" closet on a hook, rail or bar when the hanger is out of the case as indicated bythe dot and dash-line positionzof the latch in Fig- 1. .Ea'ch. hanger 17 is attached to the. frames in the manner herein described, and with. the} pin 23 long enoughtwo or more ha er may e: atia hei q t e fram The hangers are in super-imposed relation when attached to the frame and the suits thereon are in the same relation when on the frame. In the drawings I have shown the frame constructed to accommodate two suits, the pin 23 being long enough to accommodate two hangers 1'7.

The frame 8 is provided at its outer or free end with an extensible section 28 which as shown in the drawings is also formed from single strip of metal preferably steel. This section is 'U -shape in form and is arranged to straddle the outer end of the main frame. The side members 29,29 of athe section are pivoted at 30 to the main frame to the rear of its cross-bar 12. The inner ends of the members 29 continue fora short distance beyond the pivots to engage stops 31, 31 in the form of rivets on the sides: of the main frame when the section is in fully extended'position beyond the same. i The inner ends of the side members 29 are bent to be so angularly disposed to the remaining;portionsof themembers that when they engage the stops thesection 28 will extend at a downward inclination to the main-frame and by contact with the body 1.-of.; the case where it crosses it hold the main frame ina substantially horizontal position as shown in Figs l and 2. The advantage of this isthatthe garments sup ported on the upper side of the main frame are preventedfrom sagging or dropping down into the body of the case for contact with the smaller articles packed therein; .To facilitate supporting the'portions of the garments between. the hangers 1'7 and the bar 12, I providethe -main frame with a rigid cross-member 32 of ,wood or other light material. Said member has metal end pieces which engage over the side arms;. 9 of the-main frame and are riveted thereto asshown.

Attached to the outer-end of theamain frame is an auxiliary or supplemental cross-ba 33 over which the secondsuiton the frame folds when twosuitsare attached to the main frame; This bar is preferably of woodor other light material and is attached to a support in the form ofa metal strip 34,-the end portions 35 of whichare bent at right angles to the bar and are insertable in sockets carriedbythemainframe'at the opposite sidesthereof as shown in; the drawings. These sockets comprise metal sleeves 36 ,36 riveted to the main frame about the side arms thereof, as shown in'Figs. 6 and"?. iTh ends of the side arms 9, to which sleeves are attached are offset inwardly to position the end portions 35 of the supplemental :bar inline with the side arms when attached thereto asshown in Fig.6. The end portions 35 havea fairlysnuggfit in the sockets 36, and thus the: supplemental bar is-releasably secured in place. Metal discs 3'7, 3'7 are provided at-the ends of the bar 33 to prevent. the folded portions of thegarments thereon sliding over the ends of; the bar to be caught or torn between the main frame and itspivoted' extension 28.

wall of the lid 2 when the framefis swung into thesame. 1

To pack one or more suits the case, the latter is opened, the frame lowered, and the hangers 17 are removed. The suits areseparately placed on the respective, hangers, and the latter are re turned one steam to theframef 8. The first suit returned is attached to the frame through the latch member 24 on itsfhanger The'suit is adjusted overithe top of theframeandv extends over the bar '12'at'the outer ndof the. frame.

These discs have laterally projecting flanges 38, 38 which may contact fiatwise with the rear The supplemental bar 33 has previously been removed from the frame and the suit may extend over the permanent bar 12 and out of the case over the extension 28. If a second suit is to be packed on the frame, the supplemental bar 33 is replaced, and the suit after being attached to the frame by its hanger 17 is adjusted over the first suit and extends out of the case over the extension 28. The garments being longer than the distended frame, extend out of the case beyond the front wall '7 thereof and hang out of the case over the cross-bar 28 at the outer end of the extension 28. As this, extension projects beyond the wall '7, its cross-bar 28 keeps the garments out of contact with said wall and the handle 38 and the locking devices 5 and 6 thereon, as shown in Fig. 1. Thus the garments are prevented from being soiled by contact with said wall or any of the fixtures thereon or from being torn or injured by said fixtures which are usually of metal and present more or less sharp edges at the boundaries thereof.

In locking the hangers 17 to the frame 8, the slots 25 in the latch members 24 by reason of their arcuate shape exert somewhat of a cam action on thepin 23 when swung into engagement therewith and draw the hangers against the pin. The slight clearances allowed between the hangers, the pin and the latch members prevent displacement of the hangers when locked to the pin. With the bottom flange of the bracket 21 on the under side of the hangers and supporting them, and with the latch members 24 beneath the upper flange of the bracket, the

hangers are maintained in the general plane of the main frame even when free of garments. Thus shifting of the hangers with respect to the frame is prevented whether packed or not and when packed the garments on the hangers are held against lateral displacement when raised into the lid or cover 2.

To raise the garments into the lid or cover 2, the main frame 8 is lifted by the extension 28. As the frame is swung upward, the outer bar 28 of the extension lifts the tail ends of the garments above the body 1 of the case and prevents them from trailing over the articles packed in said body. When the main frame reaches its upright position in the lid, the extension 28 is lowered against the front side of the frame, thus causing the garments to fold. over the bars 12 and 33 at the upper end of the frame and hang down on the outer side of the same with the extension in between. With the extension 28 so positioned, it is retained by the garments against the main frame.

To hold the frame with the garments thereon in the lid 2, I may employ any desired form of fastening or holding means. Such means as shown in the drawings comprises a flexible cover or curtain 39 secured in the lid 2 at its upper end by a metal strip 40. The curtain has a length to extend close to the lower end of the main frame and is there provided with a flexible metal rod 41, the ends of which project beyond the sides of the curtain and are engageable with keepers 42, 42 on the side arms of the main frame adjacent the inner ends of the same. These keepers are disposed to be on the outer side of the frame when it is raised in the lid and when in plate form, as shown in the drawings, are riveted to the main frame and have spaced notches 43 along the outer edges thereof. These notches enable the rod 41 to be engaged with keepers at various points along the length of the same and thus enable the desired tension to be placed on the curtain for holding the main frame in the lid and the garments compacted or compressed thereon. The curtain covers the garments and prevents them from sagging or contacting with the articles in the body of the case when the lid is closed.

With the frame mounted in the lid of the case, the suits may be readily packed in the case and be supported therein in folded form without wrinkling or creasing. With the suits so packed, it is obvious, that they will not interfere with access to the bodyof the case in which are packed those articles usable to a more frequent extent than the garments packed in the lid. Thus the case may be opened and closed without hindrance by the garments packed in the lid and free access may behad to the articles in the body of the case without hindrance by the garments in the lid;

To remove the suits from the case, the curtain is released from its keepers and folded back over the upper edge of the lid as shown in Fig. 1 after the lid has been raised. The extension 28 is grasped and lifted and at the same time is drawn outward to swing the main frame out of the lid. After the main frame is brought to lowered position over the body of the case, the uppermost suit is accessible and by releasing the latch member 24 from the pin 23, the hanger with suit thereon may be removed. If the lower suit is to be removed, the supplemental bar 33 is removed and the lower suit freed for removal from the case.

The supplemental bar 33 not only serves to hold the lower suit on the frame but also provides means for distributing the bulk of the material at the folds along the length of the frame. This is brought about by having the bars in spaced relation in the direction of the length of the frame thereby reducing the bulk of the material at the outer end of the frame and allowing the frame with both suits thereon to fit within a relatively shallow lid. Moreover, by this arrangement practically all of the available space within the lid is occupied by the garments on the frame with the result that none of this space is wasted, which would be the case should all the garments on the frame be folded over one bar at the outer end of the frame. In such case, it would be necessary to provide an exceptionally deep lid to accommodate the bulk of the material at the fold, with the necessity of making the body of the case shallower and therefore hold less and in fact would be unsuitable for a hat and other articles which have considerable height. In distributing the bulk of the garments at the fold over the outer end of the frame in accordance with my invention it is possible to retain the depth necessary for the body of the case and also apply my invention to cases which for commercial purposes must be limited to a height which will permit them being placed under a Pullman berth. Furthermore, with the arrangement of my invention, the lid or cover section of the case is maintained in such proportion to the deeper body of the case that the case will not tip over backward when opened with a full packing of garments in the lid of the same.

With a case equipped with garment supporting fixtures or means of my invention, as herein described and shown, the case may accommodate one or more mens suits in the lid of the case. When only one suit is to be packed, the suit may be folded either over the permanent bar 12 or over the supplemental bar 33. If the permanent bar is used, the supplemental bar is replaced on the frame after the suit is in place, as shown in Fig. 1.

While have shown and-described herein the application of only two garment hangers'to the garment carrying frame, yet it is obvious that it would be within the scope of my invention to provide a constructionaccommodating more of such hangers whereby more than two suitscould be attached to the frame. Ordinarily, the arrangement for two suits would satisfy the needs of most travelers and of course a construction could be arranged to carry more suits if required, it being possibly essential in su h case to have a deeper lid, the carrying and garment attaching structure however remaining substantially the same as herein shown and described. The extension 28 is provided with a cross bar 44 to support the portions of the garments extending thereover when the frame andextension are in lowered position over the body of. the case. 'With this bar intermediate the outer endof the extension of the outer end of the main frame, the bar supports the shorter portions'of the garments whichrdo not extend across the outer end of the extension and thus prevents such garment portions from falling through the 'openspace in the extension. The bar 44 is preferably of wood or other light material and is fixed to the side arms 29 of the extension by metal fasteners in the same manner as used for the cross-bar 32 of the main frame. Any number of cross pieces could be added to the extension or the main frame 'or they could be omitted entirely without affecting the principles involved in the main frame and the method 'of carrying the garments.

The details fof construction and arrangement of parts shown and described may be variously changed and modified without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention except as pointed out in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention: I V e 7 11A hand carried luggage case, comprising having detachable connection therewith} hingedly connected body; and;-cover sections, a garment carrying 'elernent pivotally moented at its inner end in one of said sections and adapted to'support garments in folded form over its outer end, means on the element whereby a plufrality 'of garments maybe attached theretoin super-imposed relation, and cross-bars at the outerend of the element for individual folding thereover offthe garments on the element, said barsbeing in spaced relation in the length of the element and in the plane thereof. a

2. nhand carriedi'luggage case, comprising hingedlyconnected ho ey, and cover s'ections a garment carrying element -pivoi zallyv mounted at 3. A hand i'carried luggage case, comprising hingediy connected body and cover sections, a garment carrying element pivotally mounted at its inner end in the cover section and adapted to support a garment inffolded'form over its outer end, conventienal form of garmenthanger engageable with the elementfor attaching a garment thereto, a flexible curtain carried by the cover section and swingable over theouter side of the element when in the'cover section for completely covering the garment andfretaining the element and garment in the cover section, a rod carried by the curtain adjacent its outer end, and keepers carried'by the element adjacent its inner end to releasably engage the rod.

WILLIAM VYINTZ'. 

